China responds to claims of setting debt trap for Kenya after Ruto turned to US
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China responds to claims of setting a debt trap for Kenya and other African countries which are facing a financial crisis
China responds to claims of setting a debt trap for Kenya and other African countries which are facing a financial crisis.
China Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin, on Monday, April 10, denied reports that China had trapped Kenya and other African countries with debt.
Wang argued in a statement that China was a supportive partner in assisting African nations to escape poverty.
“China is not the source of debt trap for African countries, but a partner lifting them out of a poverty trap,” Wang stated.
His comment came in reaction to a report in a global magazine stating China was the largest creditor, having provided loans to African nations totaling Ksh8 trillion between 2000 and 2020.
According to the report, Zambia owes Ksh1.3 trillion, Angola Ksh5.6 trillion, Ethiopia 1.8 trillion, and Kenya Ksh1.2 trillion in debt.
China’s response also came in response to statements made by senior US officials in which they accused China of entangling African countries.
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China, however, denied the accusations and reaffirmed its dedication to helping African nations develop economically and socially.
According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the country’s debt stands at Ksh9.182 trillion, edging towards the Ksh10 trillion borrowing cap set by Parliament in June 2022.
Meanwhile, President William Ruto’s administration has renewed several partnership deals with the US government and investors as the cold war between the West and the East escalates.
The Kenya Kwanza administration also vowed to remove impediments hindering trade between Kenya and the US.
Ruto’s government adopted a slow approach in dealing with Beijing, having criticized it heavily for supporting the previous regime’s projects, some of which it claimed were inflated and overburdened Kenyans.
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